Dan Heinrichs knew one of the keys to this past Friday night's Pioneer Athletic Conference Frontier Division clash with Pottsgrove was to slow down their standout tailback Bryce Caffrey.

Brayden Adam, left, hangs onto the jersey of a Pottsgrove ball carrier during the second quarter of Upper Perkiomen's loss last weekend.

        What he didn't plan on, though, was how well the rest of the Falcons would step up as they put a 42-21 exclamation point to their divisional finale. Caffrey was limited under his typical game average of 57 receiving and 79 yards rushing, finishing with 34 and 67, respectively with one rushing touchdown. But his teammates more than made up for it as they racked up over 350 yards of offense and took a commanding 28-0 lead early in the second quarter.

        "Friday night was quintessential to our season," Heinrichs said in a text after the game. "Defense held inconsistently. We wanted to take No. 1 (Caffrey) out of the game and we did that at times. It was small undisciplined plays that we repped all week that hurt us."

        Upper Perk (0-5 Frontier, 1-8 overall) made the Falcons (3-2, 5-4) work for their first score. Pottsgrove needed over four-and-a-half minutes, 11 plays and a pair of third-down conversions and one fourth-down conversion before they were able to cross the goal line. From there, though, they poured it on – scoring on their next three possessions within a nine-minute timeframe to take a 28-0 edge with 10:12 left in the second quarter.

        The Indians managed to get on the board later in the second quarter as Zach Schwartz (13 carries, 47 yards) ran off left tackle for a 15-yard score. The drive was boosted by Schwartz's kickoff return to Upper Perk's 47, and two plays later the Indians crossed midfield for the first time.

        Aiden Void helped set the stage for Schwartz's score as he went up to pull down a 23-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Logan O'Donnell (6 of 12, 106 yards, TD, interception).

            "Our offense is extremely young," Heinrichs said. "With one senior and three juniors starting, we need to do a better job backing them up defensively."

            O'Donnell completed half of his passes and spread the ball out to five different receivers. Schwartz accounted for the longest, a swing pass out of the backfield that he took 50 yards for a score in the third quarter down the visitors sideline.

            "Logan has taken big steps in the last few weeks as a player and leader. He's taking what the defense gives him."

            Weather also proved to be a factor. What started as a slow drizzle in the second half turned into a steady downpour as the mercy clock ran the balance of the third and fourth quarters.

            Schwartz's second score made it 42-14 with nine minutes left in the third, and Brody Weiss, who led the Indians on the ground with 62 yards on 11 carries, capped off the scoring with a seven-yard touchdown later in the frame.

            Schwartz also played a big hand in the defensive effort, leading his team with six solo tackles in the secondary. Brody Weiss and Zane Saeger both made three tackles apiece, Gavin Weiss broke up a pass and Dylan Bieber had two tackles and one for a loss. Matt Delzingaro and Maddux Diaz both had two tackles.

            Upper Perk will look to close out its season this Friday night as it travels to Norristown in a PAC crossover contest. The Eagles are 0-9 on the season and are coming off a 35-6 loss to Spring-Ford. Their closest game came back in week two when they fell 20-13 to Upper Merion. On the year, they have been outscored 269-65, compared to the Indians' 292-157.

            "A win this week is more important than ever before," Heinrichs said. "We must come together as a team and find a way to take the momentum from the start and find a way to win on the road. Norristown has speed and is not lacking talent. We need to do what we do best and try not to do too much. Defense needs to compliment the offense better and put them in better situations."